Sat Sep 14, 2013 22:46:56
At least 26 people have been killed and 45 others injured in a suicide bomb attack in Iraq’s northern province of Nineveh.
The attack took place on Saturday at the funeral of a member of the country’s Shabak minority in the Bartella city, located 25 km east of the provincial capital of Mosul.
It was not immediately clear who carried out the attack, but Iraqi al-Qaeda frequently carries out coordinated bombings against such civilian targets as mosques, markets and restaurants.
The blast came a day after some 30 people were killed in two bomb explosions near a mosque in the northern city of Baquba. The two bombs went off minutes apart. The second bomb exploded as crowds gathered to help those injured in the first blast.
Violence has surged across Iraq in recent months, reaching its highest level since 2008.
According to the United Nations, more than 800 people were killed across Iraq in various acts of terrorism in August alone.
UN figures also say that over 4,000 people have died in terrorist attacks in Iraq so far in 2013, with Baghdad province hit worst.
The Iraqi government says al-Qaeda-linked groups and members of the outlawed Ba’ath party are behind the surge in terrorist attacks in the country.
RA/HH
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